Egg-turning mechanism for incubators.



A. T. POPE. EGG TURNENG MECHANISM FOR INCUBATORS. APPLICATION FILED APR. 22. 1912.

LQM,%?& Patented Jan 22, 1918.

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A. T. POPE.. EGG TURNING MECHANISM-FOB mcuamons.

APPLICATION FILED APR-27,1917.

Patented Jan; 22, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' mmma llllilITliI @ATIQ ATENT ALFRED TI-IRUSTON POPE, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO CURRAN POPE, 0F LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

EGG-TURNING MECHANISM FOR INCUBATORS.

Application filed April 27, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED Tl-IRUSTON Porn, a citizen of the Jnited States, residing at Louisville, county of Jefferson, and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Egg-Turning Mechanism for Incubators; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to incubators, and more particularly to the egg turning mecha nism thereof.

It is well known in the art that during the period of incubation, the eggs should be turned at predetermined intervals, in order that the best results may be obtained.

Furthermore, it is desirable to turn the drawers of the incubator end for end, and in incubators where more than one drawer is used, it is desirable to interchange the drawers. In this manner, all of the eggs are subjected to the same conditions during the period of incubation, and, consequently, the greatest production is obtained.

It is an object of my invention to provide means for rolling or turning the eggs, which means is so constructed that it will permit the withdrawal and reversal of the drawers and also the interchanging of the same, and so that it will properly cooperate with the egg rolling frame of any one of the drawers.

It is a further object of my invention to so construct the aforementioned means that all of the eggs in all of the drawers of a sectional incubator may be simultaneously turned or rolled by a single manual operation, and it is a still further object to so construct the actuating means that it may be rendered operative or inoperative by a single manual operation.

Furthermore, I contemplate constructing the device in such manner that it may be incorporated in many commercial machines which are at present in use with only slight modifications of the same, and may be, of course, built into new machines.

With these and other objects in view, such as will appear as my description progresses, my invention comprises the combination and arrangements of parts as set forth in and falling within the scope of the appended claims.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 22, rare.

Serial No. 165,025.

In the drawings Figure l is a sectional view from front to rear of a sectional incubator with my invention incorporated therein;

Fig. 2 is a fragmental and elevation;

Fig. 3 is a fragmental front sectional view showing portions of two incubator sections taken along the broken line 3-3 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section on line l*4 of Fig. 1, illustrating the manner of connecting the two sections of the actuating shaft together;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of an egg drawer showing the egg rolling or turning frame therein;

Fig. 6 is a fragmental perspective of an egg drawer showing the elongated opening per see;

Fig. 7 is a perspective of the connection between the shaft sections; and

Fig. 8 is a detail. of the crank locking means.

In the drawings, I have illustrated a sectional incubator, two sections 1 and 2 being disclosed, which sections are placed side by side on a suitable support, in the usual manner, with the adjacent walls 3 and 4 abutting. Each of the sections is divided into a plurality of compartments 5 and G for the reception of the egg drawers. These egg drawers 7 are located in the compartments in spaced relation to the bottom, are supported, romovably, by cleats 8, and are adapted to be removed from the sections through doors The drawers are prefer ably rectangular and slide 011 the cleats into and out of position, the proper positioning being obtained by the contact of the drawers with a suitable stop, such as the back of the incubator. The bottom of each egg drawer is made of wire mesh and is provided with an elongated opening 10 at the central portion thereof.

An egg rolling or turning frame 11 is mounted within each of the egg drawers for reciprocation, the rolling frame being shorter than the egg drawer. This egg rolling frame is provided with transversely extending bars 12, between which the eggs are adapted to be located and which are such distances apart that the eggs will rest on the bottom of the drawer. Thus when the egg rolling frames are moved in one direction or the other, the eggs will be turned.

In order that the eggs in all of the I moval of the latter.

drawers of a sectional incubator may be turned, 1 have provided the following mechanism. Extending longitudinally through the incubator, at right angles to the line of reciprocation of the egg rolling frames, is a sectional shaft 13, which is mounted in suitable bearings lt, and one end of which extends through the side wall of the endmost section. On one end of one section of the rod is secured, by means of a set screw 15, a fork-shaped member 16, between the legs of which, a crank 17 operates, the crank being properly secured to the adjacent end of the next section by a set screw 18. Thus when the first section is turned, the rotary motion will be imparted to all of the sections of the shaft. The shaft is made in sections in this manner to facilitate the setting up and operation of the incubator, for it has been found in actual practice that the incubator sections vary in construction to such an extent that it would be impossible to have the sections of the shaft 13 in perfect alinenient, and, consequently, it would be impracticable to positively couple the ends of the sections of the shaft together. Located on the shaft 13, adjacent to each of the egg drawers, is an eccentric, which is designated generally by the reference character 19, and which comprises a casting having a cam portion 20 and a flange 21 thereon, which casting is secured to the shaft by a set screw 22. It comprises further a second casting 23, which forms the flange 24; corresponding to the flange 21 and is secured to the shaft by a set screw 25. Surrounding the cam portion 20 of the eccentric is a cam strap 26, which is formed on the end of a connecting rod 27 The placing of the strap on the cam 20 is greatly facilitated by the making of the eccentric in two pieces, as the strap may be slipped upon the cam vbefore the casting 23 is moved into place. Each of the connectingrods 27 is provided with an upwardly extended portion 28 which is adapted to project into a Socket 29 formed in a bar 30 on each of the egg rolling frames, but is so constructed that it may be freely disengaged from said socket, so that the connecting rod may drop below the bottom of the adjacent egg drawer to permit the re- Thus the connecting rods will not only have a reciproeatory movement produced by the action of the cocentric, but may also have a pivotal movement, so that they may be swung to and from engagement with the sockets 29.

In order that the connecting rods may be simultaneously raised or lowered to engage or disengage in the sockets 29, I have provided a second shaft 31 which is, like the shaft 13, formed in sections, and which sections are connected together by cranks 32 and forked connecting members 33, the shaft being mounted in suitable bearings 34. On

this shaft 31 is a plurality of cams 35, which cams are arranged beneath the connecting rods 27, so that the latter rest upon the same. The cams are provided with side flanges 36, which prevent the accidental disengagement of the connecting rods. With this construction, it will be seen that the connecting rods may be raised to their operative positions, where they will engage in the sockets 29, or may be lowered and disengaged from the sockets upon the proper rotation of the-shaft 31, and the consequent movement of the cams 35. It is, of course, to be understood that when the vertical portions of the con necting rods swing upwardly into the sockets 29, they pass through the elongated open ings 10' in the bottoms of the egg drawers, so that they will be free to reciprocate the egg rolling frames without imparting movement to the egg drawers themselves.

Mounted on the end of the shaft 13, which protrudes beyond the end of'the incubator, is a worm wheel 37, which meshes with a worm 38 carried by a rod 39, which rod is mounted in suitable bearings 10 on the end of the incubator and is provided with a crank handle tl, by means of which it may be operated. Thus, when the crank handle 41 is turned, motion will be imparted to the shaft 13 through the worm 88 and the worm wheel 37, and the connecting rods will cause the reciprocation of the egg rolling frames, so that the eggs will be properly turned. The crank handle, of course, may be turned in either direction to impart the proper .movement to the egg rolling frames and the extent of movement may be gaged by an indicator which is formed on the face of the worm wheel 37. y

The shaft 81 is rotated by means of a crank handle 42 which is secured to the end of the shaft which protrudes through the end of the incubator and which crank may be secured in either one of two positions by means of a pin 43, which passes throughthe crank and into apertures 4a in the adjacent end of the incubator. Thus, when the cam 35 is in its raised position, the crank will be in the position illustrated in Fig. 2, but when the cam is in its lowered position, the crank wll occupy an opposite position, and the pin 13 will. extend through the lower aperture 14:.

From the foregoing description, it will b seen that I have so constructed the actuating means for the egg turning frames that but a single manual operation will be necessary to accomplish the reciprocation of all of the frames, and 1 have further so connected the actuating means to the egg turning frames that they may be readily disengaged therefrom to permit the withdrawal of the drawers, the reversal or the interchanging of the same. Furthermore, I have so constructed the means for rendering the actuating means operative or inoperative that it, too, may be actuated by a single manual operation.

What I claim is:

1. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, and pivotally mounted, reciprocating means detachably engaged with the frame for actuating the same, whereby the drawer may be removed and turned end for end during the period of incubation.

2. In a sectional incubator having longitudinally disposed sections, the combination with a plurality of egg drawers arranged in said sections adapted to be removed and turned end for end, of egg rolling frames adapted to reciprocate therein, means adapted to engage with each frame irrespective of its position for reciprocating the same, and means common to all of said last-mentioned means for actuating the same.

8. In a sectional incubator, the combination with a plurality of egg drawers adapted to be removed and turned end for end, of egg rolling frames adapted to reciprocate therein, means adapted to engage with each frame for reciprocating the same, common means for rendering the reciprocating means operative-or inoperative, and common means for actuating the reciprocating means.

--t. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer adapted to be removed and turned end for end, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, means for reciprocating the frame irrespective of its position including an oscillatory shaft, a connecting rod having eccentric connection with the shaft'and direct detachable connection with the frame, means for actuating the shaft, and means for establishing or destroying the connection between the rod and frame.

5. In a sectional incubator, the combina tion with a plurality of egg drawers, of egg rolling frames mounted therein and adapted to reciprocate in the drawers, means to reciprocate the frame including a sectional shaft, a loose connection between the sections, a connecting rod for each frame having an eccentric connection with the shaft, and a detachable connection with the frame, and means for oscillating the shaft.

(3. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, and recipro eating means movable to engage and disengage the rolling frame, for actuating the latter, whereby the drawer may be removed aud turned end for end during the period of incubation.

7. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, an oscillatory and reciprocatory element, means for reciprocating said element to actuate the frame, and means to oscillate the element to engage it with and disengage it from the frame.

8. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, means ar ranged beneath the drawer for detachably engaging the frame to reciprocate the same, and means for actuating the last-mentioned means.

9. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate there-in, means passing through the bottom of the drawer and detachably engaged with the frame for reciprocating the latter, and means for actuating the last-mentioned means.

10. In an incubator, the combination with an drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, means extending through the bottom of the drawer and detachably engaged with the frame for reciprocating the same, means for controlling the engagement. between the lastmentioned means'and the frame, and means for actuating the framereciprocating means.

11. In an incubator, the combination with an egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, an oscillatory and reciprocatory element arranged beneath the frame, means for raising and lowering the element into and out of. engagement with the frame, and means for actuating the element to reciprocate the frame.

12. In a sectional incubator, the combination with a plurality of egg drawers arranged in substantially the same horizontal plane, of egg rolling frames adapted to reciprocate therein, oscillatory and reciprocatory elements adapted to engage said frames, means common to all of said elements for imparting oscillatory movement thereto to engage and disengage them with and from the said frame, and means common to all of said elements for imparting reciprocatorv movement thereto to actuate the frames.

13. In an incubator, the combination with a removable egg drawer, of an egg rolling frame adapted to reciprocate therein, and reciprocating means, movable into and out of thepath of movement of the drawer to engage and disengage the egg rolling frame, for actuating the latter, whereby the drawer may be removed and turned end for end during the period of incubation.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

ALFRED THRUSTON POPE.

Gopies at this patent may be obtained for flve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. (3. 

